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world, naturally leads us to the last refurrection and final judgment to be paffed upon the whole race of Adam, according to the deeds done in the body; a judgment in which the righteous, through Christ, will be rewarded with everlafting and immortal happinefs, and the followers of Satan, or those that have lived in the gratifications of their lufts, and without God in the world," and thofe in particular who fhall have worshipped the "beast of atheism "and his image," will be condemned to everlasting punishment; a judgment which feems, from the tenor of the prophecies and other parts of the Scriptures, to be the laft office committed to Chrift by the Father, as the Son of Man, to be performed on earth before he thall deliver up his kingdom to God, that God inay be all in all. For the world being deftroyed, and all the pofterity of Adam having fuffered a temporal death, except those alive at the coming of Chrift, nothing feems to remain but for him to judge the quick and the dead, and to deftroy the power of the "fecond death;" that death. which was brought into the world by the wiles of Satan and the difobedience of Adam, and which the latter, with all his pofterity, must have fuffered, had not the abundant mercies of an everlafting God reprieved them for a time, to give them an opportunity of recovering their loft immortality and happinefs; that death from which Chrift came to fave the world §; that death, the second death, by which he that overcometh fhall not be hurt, "but fhall eat of "the tree of life in the paradife of God;" that death which Chrift fhall fo deftroy that it fhall have no power upon thofe who fhall be redeemed through faith in his Gofpel; for to him that overcometh, God has promised that "he fhall inherit all things, and

* Rev. xxi. 8.
§ Acts. iv. 11, 12.

† 1 Cor. xv. 28.

1 Cor. xv. 22.

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"he will be his Gop, and he fhall be His Son *;" but that death, which fhall have its full effect upon the fearful and unbelieving, and the abomi"nable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and forcerers, and idolaters, and ALL LIARS," for thefe fhall have a part in the lake of fire and brimftone, which is the fecond death."

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This coming of Chrift, after the deftruction of the world, to judge the human race, their refurrection, to a ftate of immortality, and Chrift's final victory over the fecond death, are truths more frequently inculcated and established by the "two witneffes of God," the Old and New Teftaments, than any others. They are held up as the great objects of the faith and hope of both the churches of God, of the Jewish as well as Chriftian, and they are fo often repeated, that the texts themselves, were I to recite them all, would form a volume. I fhall, therefore, treat of them in a brief manner, only referring the reader to many others, in which they are farther explained and foretold.

In regard to the coming of Chrift to judge mankind, the texts are numerous indeed. Samuel declares, "That the adverfaries of the Lord (Satan "and the ungodly) fhall be broken to pieces," (utterly destroyed). "Out of heaven he hall thunder

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upon them," (fhall pour down his wrath). "The "LORD fhall judge the ends of the earth, and he "fhall give ftrength to his King, and exalt the horn "of his anointed," (of Jefus Chrift)." He shall "call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, "that he may judge his people.§.' "Arife, O God, "and judge the earth, for thou shalt inherit all na

*Rev. xxi. 7.
Chap. ii. 10.

+Ibid. xxi, 8.
SPfal. 1. 4.

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tions*. For he cometh, for he cometh to judge "the earth." I could recite many other prophecies in the Old Teftament, of the fame great event, but to avoid prolixity, which has been my aim throughout these comments, I fhall take the liberty of referring the pious fecker after truth, to the chapters and verfes where they are to be found. Thefe evidently prove, that the coming of Chrift to judge the world, to feparate the righteous from the ungodly, was a part of the creed, and conftituted the great hope of the Jewish church. And ftrange it would be, indeed, were not the fame effential truth to be found in the Chriftian, her fifter church, when they proceeded from the fame God, and were founded upon his holy truth. However, let us hear them in their order. "All things," fays Chrift, " are delivered unto "me of the Father §;" that is, all the earth, and the things in it, mankind not excepted, are given to my power, and fubject to my dominion. Again, "For "the Father judgeth no man; but hath committed "all judgment to the Son §. For as the Father

"hath life in himself, fo hath he given to the Son "to have life in himself: and hath given him autho"rity to execute judgment alfo, because he is the Son

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of Man." And again, after his crucifixion and afcenfion, having finished his dreadful atonement to his Father's juftice for the fins of the world, he appeared to the eleven apoftles, and, as it feems, for the fole purpose of confirming their faith in this fundamental doctrine of his Gofpel, faying, "All

power is given unto me, in heaven and in earth;" meaning, all power, as well over the ancient patriarchs, prophets, and fathers, who had died in the fear and love of God, who were in heaven before

*Pfal. lxxxii. 8.

f. Ibid. xcvi. 13.

Deut. xxxii. 36.—Pf. cxxxv. 14,-xcviii. 9.-cx. 4, 5, 6. Ifa. i. 4.-Micah, iv. 3. &c. &c.

# Ver. xxvi. 27.

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§ Matt. xi. 27.

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his afcenfion, as over all the other dead and living upon earth. So John the Baptift, referring to Chrift, fays, He fhall throughly purge his floor (the world), and gather his wheat (the righteous and redeemed) into his garner (his kingdom), but he will burn up the chaff with un"quenchable fire *." St. Luke tells us, " that "Chrift commanded the apoftles to preach unto the people, and to teftify that HE it is which "was ordained of God to be the judge of quick and "dead. Again, "Because he (God) hath ap

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pointed a day (the day of judgment) in the which "he will judge the world in righteousness by that "Man (Chrift, the Son of Man) whom he hath or"dained, whereof he hath given affurance unto all "men, in that he hath raised him from the dead." St. Paul charges Timothy in a folemn manner§, "before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall "come to judge the quick and the dead at his appear"ing and his kingdom, to preach the word." I could add many other texts to show the agreement between the two churches in refpect to this fundamental truth; a truth, when rightly confidered, which must ftrengthen the faith, and be an unceafing fource of joy to the true believer, "who fears God, and gives "him the glory:" but a truth which fhall, perhaps, when too late, fmite thofe that "live without God "in the world," and blafphemously deny his existence, with terror and difmay.

In regard to the refurrection of the dead, for the purpose of their appearing before the awful tribunal of the Son of God, there is the fame confiftency to be found between the two Teftaments. It is alfo foretold by the prophets, the apostles, and by

*Matt. ii. 12.
Acts xvii. 31.

† Acts x. 42.
§ 2 Tim. iv. 1.

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Chrift

Chrift himself. David certainly believed in, and forefaw his own refurrection, or he could not have pofitively afferted, in his devotions to God,

wilt not leave my foul in hell," i. e. in the grave, "nor fuffer thy holy one (Chrift) to fee corrup"tion." Nor could he have foretold the refurrection of the righteous unto life eternal, and of the wicked to the condemnation of the fecond or eternal death, more clearly than in 'thefe words: "Like

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heep, they (the wicked) are laid in the grave, death (the fecond death) fhall feed on them: the upright (the faints) frall have dominion over them, "and their beauty (their temporal pleafures) fhall "confume in the grave, from their dwelling;" meaning, from their proper dwelling with Chrift, where they might and ought to have been: but he adds, "God will redeem my foul (through Chrift) from the ἐσ power of the grave; for he thall receive me. "Selah Indeed this whole Pfalm feems to be written to foretel the refurrection. Again, he feems by faith to have received, from God, fuch affurance of his refurrection, that, full of praises and thankf givings for it, he exclaims, "For great is thy mercy "fowards me, for thou haft delivered my foul from the loweft hell," or grave. So Hofea the prophet, when foretelling the restoration and redemption of Ifrael, through Chrift, reprefents God as declaring, "I will ranfom them from the power of the grave, I will redeem them from death (the fecond "death). O DEATH, I will be thy plagues; O death, I will be thy deftruction §.” Moreover, it feems fcarcely poffible for any perfon, fincerely feeking after the truth, to read, in the thirty-feventh chapter of Ezekiel, the parable of the dry bones, without perceiving a complete prophecy of the last

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* Pfalm xvi. 10. + Pfalm xlix. 15. § Hofca, xiii. 14,

Ibid. lxxxvi. 13.

refurrection.

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